Mushrooms - advice needed.

[as40]

Hello everyone!

Okay, here's the deal... I've read every posting I could find on mushrooms, but have a few specific questions remaining.

They're selling rocks full of mushroom "colonies" for a good price at the LFS, don't want to jump in without the proper knowledge though.

Here are my questions:

1. Reproduction- Do they only reproduce on the rock they're on and whatever rock is touching that one, or via spores that can travel through the water/sand (or how, basically)?

2. Ways to "isolate" them (control them from over-running the tank)?

3. Aggressiveness- I've read they can "sting" other corals near them. How close do they actually have to be to have this happen (how much space should I leave between them and anything else)?

4. Different (apparently) species of 'shrooms "co-habitating" on the same rock at the LFS- They don't "sting" each other?

5. Ways of "pruning" mushrooms, if necessary to control them.

Thank you very much in advance!

 

[mogurnda]

My experience is limited to one species, looks like some kind of discosoma, and what I've read. Here are some opinions.

1. It's unlikely that they'll ever reproduce sexually in your tank, so the spread will be limited to where they crawl. Its quite something to watch a blob that tore off the foot develop into a mushroom.
2. Isolate the rock. Mine have tended to keep to shady spots, and Borneman says that most species dislike intense light, so you might be able to use bright areas as barriers. Areas of sand or rubble work well, because you can simply pick up and move any polyps on these surfaces (and trade them for stuff you want).
3. They have to touch, but this could be a pretty big radius when you consider the tentacles of the adjacent corals and the fact that mushrooms can get 4-6" in diameter.
4. dunno
5. For "weedy" corals, I have found that kalkwasser paste acts as a reef version of "roundup." I use a little 1 cc syringe and coat the area of interest.